Go West! Some of BC’s Best Bottles Land at the LCBO

It’s not very often we get treated to a splurge of BC wines here in Ontario; yes, there are the Vintages Essentials of Mission Hill and Osoyoos Larose and a handful of others making their way periodically through Vintages during the year, but starting today the LCBO will feature a number of BC wines not always found on its shelves.

Now, we could be critical and say that there are many, many more to showcase – and we would be right. BC currently has 217 licensed wineries across its five wine-growing regions. What we will be exposed to over the following two weeks are largely bottles you’ve likely heard of before – and probably even tasted – but it’s a decent start to getting more exposure to our country’s second largest wine producing province.

The biggest region within BC is the 250 kilometre Okanagan Valley – divided into 10 subregions, 115 of BC’s wineries call this home. Almost all of what we see in Ontario is from the Okanagan. The sheer size and production of many of these wineries means they have the resources, whether it be enough money or enough product or simply enough desire, to get their bottles into the LCBO.

The remaining 10o area scattered across the Similkameen and Fraser Valleys, both of which are producing some very noteworthy bottles, and the emerging wine regions on the Gulf and Vancouver Islands.

Spotlight on BC

BC is anxious to show Ontario what it can do and win over some fans here. Left over rules from yesteryear make it difficult for Ontarions to get wines from British Columbia (or any province for that matter), unless travellers bring it back with them – which takes a lot of bottles off the table, disappointing for both Canadian wine lovers and wine makers.

Anyway, to get some positive PR going the British Columbia Wine Institute invited a few dozen sommeliers and wine writers to a tasting and luncheon to sample these wines with and without food (reviews of our top picks are at the bottom of this blog – but keep reading).

The bulk of the wines showcased were gewürtztraminer, chardonnay and pinot noir with a small handful of red blends all from the Okanagan. BC, not unlike Ontario, produces predominately the noble grapes and classic varietals (pinot gris, chardonnay, gewürtzraminer, merlot, pinot noir and cabernet sauvignon), but also makes small amounts of international and Germanic varietals such as Auxerrois, Ehrenfelser, Zweigelt, Pinotage and even Sangiovese. All told, the province grows somewhere in the ballpark of 35 varietals thanks to BC’s broad scope of climate, soil and topography which allows for such a range of (successfully) produced wines.

A Closer Look at BC’s 5 Wine Growing Regions

Semi-arid conditions of the Okanagan Valley, which ranges from the dessert landscape of the south (the Sonoran Dessert’s northernmost tip ends just north of Osoyoos) is ideal for ripening cabernet sauvignon, syrah and zinfandel, to the cooler north, with clay and limestone soils which are perfect for growing piot gris, riesling and pinot noir.

The Similkameen Valley also produces a wide range of wines from cab sauv and merlot to pinot blanc and chardonnay. Lying west of the Okanagan, the arid Similkameen is protected by mountains, which also capture the heat, and soils range from glacial rock to gravel to silty loam.

In the coastal, flat Fraser Valley, early ripening varietals like chardonnay and pinot noir excel, as frost isn’t really a problem, and while some parts of the valley can receive quite a bit of rainfall in the spring and fall, July and August can be extremely dry. An agricultural epicentre, fertile soils are silty and filled with organic matter.

Germanic varietals auxerrois, pinot gris and müller thurgau do well on Vancouver Island, with its wet winters and dry summers. Wineries scatter the southern half of the island and seem to centre around the Cowichan Valley, which is protected from the Pacific by mountains and has a low risk of frost.

BC’s new kid on the block is the Gulf Island,which enjoys a mild climate thanks to the influence from the Gulf of Georgia. Although the area is considered very good for grape growing, the dry summer can be challenging due to a lack of water.

*The Wine Sisters Correction: An earlier version suggested there were 215 licensed wineries in BC. Thanks to Dino for correcting us to note there are actually 217 licensed wineries. 

TheWine Sisters’ Picks

Osoyoos Larose “Le Grand Vin,” VQA Okanagan Valley, BC 2008

$45 Vintages 626325
A merlot-dominated Bordeaux blend, from the cooler, shorter, more challenging ’08 vintage, this garnet-red wine has been aged in French oak (60% new) for 20 months.  The results are an impressively Bordeaux-esque wine that’s showing some maturity with a nose of leather, spice, wild herb, incense, dark chocolate black olive and fig notes. Great structure on the palate with grippy tannin and balanced acidity, this has focus and power with flavours of coffee bean, cooking spice, old leather, dried leaves, pencil led, and cassis. Fans of Bordeaux won’t be disappointed in this old school wine, but based on the tertiary flavours, we wouldn’t hold onto it longer than 2015 – if that long. But so what? Enjoy it tonight and enjoy with braised red meats or even seared duck breast.

Meyer Family “Reimer Vineyard” Pinot Noir, Okanagan Valley, BC 2010

$49.95 Vintages
Coming to Vintages February 7th, this is a lovely single-vineyard pinot from the Kelowna area in northern Okanagan. Absolutely enchanting with aromas of wood smoke, bacon, violet incense, toffee, coffee bean, raspberry and plum. Medium bodied with fine grain tannin and a great backbone of acidity, this has flavours of crushed black pepper, smoke, tobacco leaves, black plums and raspberry with some bitter wood tannins on the finish. Reminiscent of a rainy fall day, this would be a welcome pairing to beef stews or coq au vin.

Mission Hill “Quatrain,” VQA Okanagan Valley, BC 2008

$44.95 Vintages 218636
Elegant and smooth, but powerful with aromas of ripe sweet cherries, cassis, wild savoury herbs, baking spice and a slightly meaty/bloody note. Full and fleshy on the palate with concentrated blackberry and cherry, ripe raspberry, dried herbs and leather with woody oak notes. Terrific balance with grippy tannins and great length. Big, but enjoyable, on it’s own, it shows much better as a food wine against hard cheeses and braised meats.

Grey Monk Gewürtztraminer, VQA Okanagan Valley, BC 2011

$19.95 Vintages 321588
Bright and uplifiting, this has a perfumed nose of lavendar, lemon drops, sweet citrus fruit and canned lychee. More focus and poise than anticipated on the palate with uplifting acidity and flavours of mandarine orange, lemon grass and rose petal. Very pretty wine that paired beautifully with citrus cured salmon and cantaloupe.

Quails’ Gate Chardonnay, VQA Okanagan Valley, BC 2011

$21.95 Vintages 377770
Aged 50% in stainless steel and 50% in barrel – 20% new – this is a round, ripe, pleasant drinking chardonnay with aromas of light spice, mineral and a slightly leesy/funky note.  Mid weight and focused on the palate with orchard fruit, spice and melon flavours. Quite pleasant with restrained use of oak that would make this enjoyable all year round with anything from crab and avocado salad to herb-roasted chicken.